His office isn’t far from the basketball court that vividly displays the silhouette of the Philadelphia skyline, a symbol that represents the vastness of the program’s history that includes the likes of Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame inductee Herb Magee – a 1959 Second Team All-Catholic selection who went on to win the second-most wins (1,144) in NCAA men’s basketball history – and former Philadelphia 76ers head coach Jim Lynam, who led St. Joe’s to the 1961 Final Four. Lynam and Magee were high school teammates on the Burrs team that won the Philadelphia Catholic League title 64 years, which was the last time West Catholic secured the sacred championship plaque.

When entering Bocachica’s office, championship hardware greets anyone who graces it. A pair of PIAA Class 4A medals from 2017 and 2018 are purposefully positioned with one objective in mind. Bocachica secured both during his time as an assistant at Imhotep Charter under Andre Noble, one of the most heralded high school coaches the city has ever seen, and he wants his players at West Catholic to understand that those medals are, in some ways, a form of immortality.

To think that after finishing 6-16 in his inaugural season in 2018 to being one win away from the program’s inaugural state crown is nothing short of historic, and Bocachica wants this particular group of Burrs to understand that an opportunity may only come along once in a lifetime.

“A lot of times in our gym, I tell them, ‘I’m the only champion in the room’ and the only one who has cut a net down,” Bocachica said. “I know it bugs them to hear that but hopefully we take care of business, and we can teach from that experience.”

Stanford (18.1 points per game) and Clark (18.3) – who decommitted from Coppin State on March 14 and is now one of the best available recruits in the area in the class of 2023 – returned and have the Burrs on the cusp of something no other West Catholic team has ever done, even after starting the season off at 1-5. The dynamic pair who have both surpassed 1,000 career points are two-time First Team All-Catholic selections, the first West Catholic tandem ever to do that in consecutive seasons. They combined for 39 points to lead an upset over Archbishop Ryan on the road in the Philadelphia Catholic League quarterfinals and gave the Burrs consecutive trips to the Palestra for the first time in history.

Bocachica noted that a major distinction between last year’s group and this one is how calm and composed the current one is when presented with situations that were previously uncomfortable.

“When we lost the Watson twins and Nasir, we lost some amazing seniors, not just basketball players but amazing leaders,” Bocachica said.

Stanford and Clark scored 13 points apiece while the Burrs received a boost from 6-foot-3 sophomore guard Micah Waters, who had 11 points including three three-pointers, in the state semifinal versus Trinity. Amyr Walker, the 6-2 senior guard who had 13 points against Holy Redeemer in the second round, has been a viable third option and Shemar Wilbanks-Acqui (12.7 ppg) has not played during the state tournament due to personal reasons.

Saturday will be a historic day for West Catholic as Stanford, Clark and the 2022-23 Burrs are 32 minutes away from being welcomed into the pantheon of all-time greats like Magee, Lynam, Michael Brooks and Rob Hollomon, to name a few. 

“The other alternative is you’re done playing and not playing for anything,” Arrigale said. “The drive to Hershey is the better option.”

After falling in the Philadelphia Catholic League championship game to Roman Catholic, the Saints turned it around by dismantling Overbrook, 84-55 in the District 12-4A title game thanks to Robert Wright III’s incredible 43-point performance. The 6-foot junior guard and Baylor commit broke the Neumann-Goretti single-game scoring record, previously held by Billy Oakes who had 40 against Bishop Egan in 1961.

A season after bursting onto the scene and leading Neumann-Goretti (26-3) to the Philadelphia Catholic League, District 12, and PIAA 4A title, Wright has a chance to join the likes of Ja’Quan Newton, Lamin Fulton, Johnny Davis, Lamarr “Fresh” Kimble, Quade Green, Zane Martin, Dhamir Cosby-Roundtree, Chris Ings and Dymir Montague by winning multiple state titles.

Wright and 6-8 senior forward Sultan Adewale (15.0 ppg) have been sensational in these state playoffs as the Saints were without starting guard Khaafiq Myers (11.2) for the district final and first three state tournament games. He returned to play against Allentown Central Catholic in the semifinals tallying nine points, seven rebounds, four assists and three steals. Wright led the way with 24 points and Adewale had a big double-double with 15 points, 13 boards and five blocks. The big man is avg. 16.5 points and 12.8 rebounds in the state tournament with four consecutive double-doubles to his name.

“We don’t have any of that familiarity in this tournament and there isn’t a common opponent,” Arrigale said. “We’re a big game for everybody, specifically District 12 teams. It’s a championship game within itself on the way to winning a state championship if they can knock one of us off.”

Neumann-Goretti (26-3) became the first team ever to have six players score in double figures in a PIAA state championship in its 93-68 victory over Quaker Valley last season. Wright had 16 points in that game and Myers chipped in 12 as the Saints handled Kentucky freshman Adou Thiero (18 points, 10 rebounds, three blocks), Shippensburg freshman Markus Frank (29 points, 10 rebounds) and the Quakers. Thiero and Frank combined for 3,086 career points.

The Saints will meet Lincoln Park, a program with six Western Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic League (WPIAL) and two PIAA state titles. The two programs met in the 2017 PIAA 3A final as Green and Cosby-Roundtree scored 22 and 15 points, respectively in their final high school game while Nelly Cummings – who just completed his collegiate career at Pittsburgh – poured in a game-high 37 points in the 89-58 win by the Saints.

Cummings’ brother, Brandin – a 6-3 junior guard and fellow Pittsburgh commit – and Meleek Thomas are Lincoln Park’s high-scoring backcourt that have propelled an offense that is averaging 76.7 ppg and riding a 17-game winning streak heading into Thursday’s title game. Brandin is avg. 23 ppg and has made a team-high 73 three-pointers this season. He has scored 1,457 career points to date.

By hitting that game-tying three-pointer off the glass to force overtime in the Philadelphia Catholic League final, Brown stamped his name in Philadelphia high school lore, but the St. Joe’s signee didn’t stop there and he’s hoping for one more noteworthy moment when Roman Catholic (27-3) matches up with Reading on Saturday night in the PIAA Class 6A Tournament title game.

The 6-1 senior is a four-year starter and has learned the game from his stepfather, Justin Scott – an assistant coach at St. Joe’s – former head coach Matt Griffin – now an assistant at Florida Gulf Coast – Jalen Duren, Justice Williams, Daniel Skillings Jr., Khalil Farmer, and Lynn Greer III, who will be his teammate on Hawk Hill next season.

Head coach Chris McNesby – looking for his fourth state championship at the helm of the Cahillites – doesn’t mince words when describing the overall feeling of the team when Brown is playing at this level.

“As long as we have Xzayvier out on the court, we have a chance to win because he brings other guys along and builds confidence in them,” McNesby said. “He is leading us and having one of those senior years that is really special. He wants to win his last game.”

He posted 27 points, seven assists and five steals in a 60-56 overtime victory over Lower Merion in the second round then asserted himself against the Vikings in the semifinals at Bensalem High School in the same way Collin Gillespie did in that gym during his senior season. Brown scored 15 of his game-high 29 points in the fourth quarter to lead the Cahilites to a 66-56 win.

Brown and teammate Anthony Finkley (8.5), the 6-7 senior forward who will be joining him at St. Joe’s next season, mirror the first tandem that catapulted McNesby and the Cahillites to back-to-back state titles in 2015 and 2016.

“Coach McNesby puts us in the right position,” Finkley said. “Every player he’s had has been successful and he knows what he’s doing.”

The Cahillites are without two starters from the Philadelphia Catholic League title in 6-5 senior guard Jermai Stewart-Herring (13.2) and Erik Oliver-Bush (8.4), both of whom were ruled ineligible due to PIAA transfer rules. Shareef Jackson, the 6-7 sophomore forward and son of former Cahillites and Temple standout Marc Jackson, is avg. 10.7 ppg and will start in his second straight state final. 

The Red Knights have won their four state tournament games by an average of 25.8 points with its closest margin of victory being a 55-32 win over Spring-Ford in the semifinals behind 20 points from 6-2 senior guard and Rider commit Ruben Rodriguez, who enters the state final with exactly 2,000 career points and is the seventh player in Berks County history to reach that mark.

Rodriguez and 5-10 senior guard Myles Grey were teammates on the 2021 team that won a state title, and return with a chance to close out their careers with a second. Aris Rodriguez, a 6-6 senior forward, added 12 points against Spring-Ford to give Reading its 22nd win in a row. The Red Knights 2023 class has gone 83-7 in the past three seasons with three straight District 3 titles.